Date nut bar

Ingredients

1 C nuts, ground (e.g., pecans)
1 C seeded dates, ground
1/2 C sugar
3 egg whites
1/2 t salt
1 T cream
1 C flour
1 t baking powder
1.5 C confectioner's sugar
1/4 C lemon juice
1 t vanilla extract


Directions

- Bars
Grind the nuts and dates; sift in the granular sugar.
In another bowl, whip egg whites until stiff.

Gradually add the sugar mixture, whipping constantly.
Fold in the cream. Sift the flour.

Resift the flour with the baking powder and fold into the egg mixture.
Grease and flour baking sheet.

Pat dough 1/2″ thick on baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes at 350°F.

- Glaze
Mix confectioner's sugar with lemon juice and vanilla in a blender. When the cookies are still hot, spread the glaze over them

Gazpacho

Gazpacho is a hearty soup that is served cold, making it a perfect way to cool down and replenish the body on a hot, summer day in Andalucía.

This is the classic gazpacho recipe, but there are many other variations.

Gazpacho is typically served along with the main course, or afterward.
Some Spaniards serve it in a glass, as a beverage to accompany the meal.

Ingredients
1 lb /450 g tomatoes
1/2 lb / 225 g green peppers
1/2 cucumber
a few cilantro leaves
clove of garlic
1/4 chilli pepper, seeds removed (optional, leave out if you want a milder soup)
2 oz / 50 g white bread, 2-3 days old (also optional, leave out for a thinner soup)
1/2 mild Spanish onion
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1/3 pt iced water
Sea salt and black pepper
Ice cubes

Garnish

2 tomatoes, skinned
1/2 green pepper
1/4 peeled cucumber
2 slices stale white bread, crusts removed

Method

Skin the tomatoes and cut into quarters. Remove seeds and stalks from peppers. Peel the cucumber and cut into chunks. Tear up the bread and soak it in water for 30 minutes and then squeeze it dry. Cut up the onion.

Blend all the ingredients until roughly chopped, not too fine, because the soup should have texture and discernible vegetable bits. Pour into large bowl with some ice, add salt and pepper. Then prepare the garnishes.

Dice the bread and fry it in a little olive oil until brown. Chop the other vegetables finely. Serve in separate little bowls on the table, so that guests can sprinkle on their own toppings.

Serve chilled, preferably on a hot day and within sight of the sea.

Rigatoni pasta with Ricotta in Tomato Cream Sauce

Pasta with Ricotta cheese in a tomato cream sauce topped with parmasean cheese and parsley.

Ingredients (serve 6)

16 ounces Rigatoni (or other) pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup onions, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 can (28 oz) plum tomatoes, drained and chopped
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
2 tablespoons basil, finely diced
1/2 teaspoon oregano, finely diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
16 ounces ricotta cheese
1 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup parsley, chopped.
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated


Procedure

In a large pot bring 2 quarts of lightly salted water to a boil.

Cook Rigatoni pasta for 11-minutes (or until al dente), drain and set aside until needed.

Over medium heat, melt butter and heat oil in a large skillet.

Lightly saute onions and garlic cloves, don't brown. Cook about 5-minutes.

Drain canned tomatoes, dice and add to skillet with onions and garlic.

Also add to skillet tomato sauce, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Simmer 20 minutes.

Stir in ricotta cheese. Mix well and simmer for 5-minutes.

Stir in heavy cream and sugar. Mix well and simmer 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and add to cooked Rigatoni pasta. Mix well.

Stir in chopped parsley and sprinkle grated parmesan cheese over top.

Serve hot.

Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin pie is a traditional American holiday dessert. The pie consists of a pumpkin based custard baked in a single pie shell. The pie is traditionally served with whipped cream.

Ingredients

2 cups Milk, scalded
2 cups Pumpkin, cooked and strained
1 cup Maple syrup
1/8 cup Sugar
1 Tbsp. Flour
½ tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Ginger
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1/4 tsp (optional). Nutmeg
2 large Eggs, beaten
1 unbaked nine inch pie shell


Procedure

Blend above ingredients, except the pie shell, together.
Pour into the unbaked pie shell.
Bake at 350 °F (175 °C) for 45 minutes.
Let cool and serve.


Notes, tips, and variations

This recipe replaces much of the sugar normally found in a pumpkin pie recipe with maple syrup. Use only real 100 percent maple syrup, not maple flavored pancake syrup, as their sugar content is different. You can use brown sugar instead of maple syrup.
Prepare the raw pumpkin by scraping out the inside, skinning and cutting into 1" cubes. Bake at 350 °F (175 °C) for an hour and then turn off the heat. Leave the pumpkin in the oven for another hour or two, this will reduce the moisture content. The pumpkin may also be steamed but might end up with too much moisture, resulting in a runny pie. A 10" diameter pumpkin will make 4 to 6 pies.
Pumpkin pie has no top crust, which makes most forms of decoration impossible, but for a more aesthetically-pleasing pie, put dollops of real whipped cream on each slice, or add a decorative rim to the side crust with artfully layered dough cut-outs, in the shape of fall leaves, squash or pumpkins.

Crêpe

A crêpe is a thin pancake. It originates from Brittany, a region in the west of France, where it is traditionally served with apple cider. It used to be cooked on flat rocks (where the name comes from).
Crêpes are usually of two types: sweet or savoury, the main difference is the flour used (plain flour or buckwheat flour respectively); they may then be rolled or folded, and filled with different ingredients.

This recipe for sweet crêpes is an easy one to start with (for about 20 crêpes)


Ingredients

1 cup (230 mL) plain flour
1/2 cup (115 mL) milk
1/2 cup (115 mL) water
4 eggs
2 tbsp (15 mL) oil or melted butter
1 pinch of salt


Variations

Sweeter Crêpe: Add 2 teaspoons sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla
Chocolate Crêpe: Add 2 tablespoons chocolate sauce


Procedure

Put the flour at the bottom of a mixing bowl and make a hole in the middle where you put the eggs, the oil or butter, the salt and a bit of milk.

Mix and slowly incorporate the flour, you should get a thick paste. Then continue mixing and slowly add the rest of the milk, mix well to avoid making lumps.
You may add a bit of liqueur (traditionally brandy or fleur d'oranger) for more taste.
You may even replace part or all of the milk with beer!

Heat a crêpe pan (non-stick recommended), grease it with some butter, and pour some batter while rolling the pan to make the crêpe as thin as possible.

A drop of water can be used to test the pan temperature: too cold, and the water will sit on the pan, too hot and it will vanish immediately.
At the right temperature, the water will seem to "dance" on the pan.

Cooking may take 30 to 60 seconds until the cooked side looks like the surface of the moon, then turn it over to cook the other side; with some practice, you can flip it in the air by swinging the pan.


Serve with caster sugar, jam, spreads, etc.
Crêpes can be filled and folded into triangles or rolled up.
Some tasty fillings include:
sugar and lemon
raspberry jam & chocolate sauce
nutella & sliced banana
nutella & chopped hazelnuts
whipped cream
chocolate, caramel or butterscotch sauce
peanut butter
sugar and butter, possibly with lemon or cinnamon
strawberries, fresh or frozen
cream cheese and brown sugar

Quiche

A quiche is a baked, unsweetened custard pie, often made with savory fillings.
Originally served in Germany, quiche was adopted by neighboring France and is now considered a traditional French dish.
The French (and now English) word quiche comes from a dialectal form (Küchle) of the German word for cake (Kuchen).
Quiche became popular in Britain after World War II and in the United States during the 1960s and 70s.

Ingredients

Servings 6 ; Time :75 minutes

5 chicken eggs
1 1/3 cup (320 mL) cream (approximately 30% fat)
1/2 cup (120 mL) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 teaspoon (5 mL) chopped fresh tarragon
1 dash ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 mL) salt
1/8 teaspoon (0.7 mL) ground pepper
1 prepared frozen pie crust
3/4 cup (180 mL) freshly-grated Swiss cheese


Procedure

Preheat oven to 375° Fahrenheit (190° Celsius)

Place the eggs, cream, condensed soup, tarragon, nutmeg, salt, and pepper in a blender; blend as briefly as possible until they form a homogenous mixture

In the pie crust, create alternating layers of the shredded cheese and the mixture from the blender until the crust is full

Bake the quiche for 35-40 minutes; a toothpick or fork inserted into its middle should come out "clean"

Remove the quiche from the oven and let it cool for at least 20 minutes before serving


Warnings

The quiche mixture may drip over the edge of the pie crust while cooking; place it on a cookie sheet or place foil on the oven rack below it

The quiche will continue to cook after it is removed from the oven; be careful not to overcook it or cut it before it has had a chance to set

Half-and-half (cream with approximately 12% fat) can be substituted for regular cream to make this dish less fattening; however, be cautious of using milk because low-fat dairy products curdle more easily
A Joe Jarvis Recipe